Symantec Opens Herndon, Va. Cybersecurity Center

Symantec Corp. has opened a new security operations center in Herndon, Va. to support the company’s managed security services group, the company announced Tuesday.

The new center was formerly located in Alexandria, Va. and Symantec also operates centers in Australia, India and the UK.

Brian Dunphy, a Symantec senior product management director, said the new center provides nearly…

Booz Allen Study Finds US Environment Fosters Cyber Power

The U.S. and U.K. are leading the ranks for their ability to withstand cyber attacks, Booz Allen Hamilton reported Friday.

Booz Allen sponsored a study developed by the Economist Intelligence Unit, which assessed 19 of the world’s leading economies. The company reported the U.S., U.K., Australia, Germany and Canada are “leading the way into the digital…

HP Selected to Build Infrastructure for Australia’s Digital Hospital

Hewlett-Packard Australia Pty ltd. has signed a technology services agreement where it will design, build and maintain a part of the information, communication and technology systems for the South Australia Government’s next-generation hospital.

The new Royal Adelaide Hospital will be the first to use version 2.0 of the HP Digital Hospital Solution as the technology foundation resulting in…

‘Evil’ Hacker Faces 49 Charges

A 29-year-old Australian citizen will appear in court today on charges of illegal hacking following his arrest in a six-month police investigation of his online activities.

The man, who used the online nickname “Evil,” faces 49 charges of cyber attacks that police alleged could have caused considerable damage to Australia’s national infrastructure.

One of his alleged online crimes includes breaching the systems of Platform Networks, one of the 13 service providers…

Australian Government Agencies Susceptible to Social-engineering Scams

More than a dozen West Australian government agencies lack adequate systems to detect or respond to a cyber attack, the state’s auditor general revealed in a recent report.

The Office of the Auditor General hired a university to launch external attacks on 15 government agencies, including the health, transport, mine and gas departments.

While these intrusions were “deliberately hostile,” only one of the agencies detected the attacks.

“In some…

China Main Suspect behind Aussie Gov’t Hack

A cyber attack that targeted at least 10 parliamentary computers in Australia, including one of Prime Minister Julia Gillard, has suspected ties to Chinese hackers, according to Herald Sun.

Government sources confirmed they had been told Chinese intelligence agencies were among a list of suspected foreign hackers. A probe is believed to have been initiated by Australia’s spy agency after intelligence agencies were tipped off to…

Australia’s Spy Agency Stands Up Cyber Espionage Team

Australia’s intelligence agency, ASIO, has created a unit to handle cyber attacks on security and business computer systems by foreign enemies, according to The Australian.

Attorney-General Robert McClelland detailed the government’s worries about the cyber threat in a speech yesterday, saying the explosion of cyberspace has expanded infinitely…

Cosmetics Store Lush Hacked — Again

Nearly a month after hackers went after natural cosmetics brand Lush and exposed thousands of customers’ bank details, the company was struck again by a cyber attack that compromised its Australian and New Zealand websites.

Herald Sun reported that Lush yesterday sent an email to customers, urging those who had placed an online order with the company to contact their bank to discuss canceling their credit cards.

“While…

Report: Australia’s Cybersecurity ‘Weak’

A new report has concluded Australia is increasingly unprepared to handle cyber attacks on the country’s energy, water, transport and communications systems, and the threat is poorly understood by politicians, business people and the general public.

The “Optimising Australia’s Response to the Cyber Challenge” report by security think tank

Minister: No Internet ‘Kill Switch’ for Australia

The Australian government does not support and will not participate in actions similar to the Egyptian government, which shut down Internet access to prevent protesters from communicating with others and the outside world, an Australian official has said.

Speaking at the launch of a new HP data center in Sydney, Australian Communications Minister Stephen…